Congress 2012: Sean Patrick Maloney ad links Nan Hayworth, Tea Party

Sep. 15, 2012

Nan Hayworth

Written by

Brian Tumulty

Washington Bureau

Sean Patrick Maloney

Map: Congressional District 18

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WASHINGTON — With just over seven weeks until Election Day, freshman Republican Rep. Nan Hayworth of Bedford continues to be a top Democratic target in the nationwide battle for control of the House of Representatives.

Hayworth seeks re-election in the redrawn 18th Congressional District, which covers all of Putnam and Orange counties, six towns in northeastern Westchester County and the southeast corner of Dutchess.

This week, two cable television ads, one by Democratic challenger Sean Patrick Maloney and another paid for by a Democratic super PAC, began competing with cable TV ads Hayworth has run since earlier in the summer. The attack ads characterize Hayworth as a Tea Party Republican.

Hayworth’s own ads are upbeat and positive. One talks about her parents’ roots and her medical career, ending with her in a group hug with her husband, Scott Hayworth, and their two sons. Another addresses Medicare, a hot topic since Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., became GOP presidential challenger Mitt Romney’s running mate.

Maloney is a Manhattan attorney who has been on a leave of absence from his job since May. That’s when he began living in a small carriage house on three acres he bought May 1 in the Putnam community of Cold Spring. He and his partner, Randy Florke, plan to build a larger modular home there in the next 12 months and move in with their three children.

Maloney, who won a five-way Democratic primary June 26, characterizes the race as a choice between a Tea Party Republican and a Bill Clinton Democrat. He worked in the Clinton White House.

Hayworth characterizes herself as “a good servant of the Hudson Valley” and a “citizen legislator” who has worked well with Democrats. She calls Maloney a “political activist” who shopped for a district to run in.

Hayworth had a cash advantage at the most recent filing deadline, with $1.48 million to Maloney’s $264,364.

Though most independent political handicappers say Democrats are unlikely to pick up the additional 25 House seats they need to regain a majority, they could narrow the gap in the November election. Key House races include eight in New York. Hayworth’s district is high on the list, receiving a “tossup” rating from the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.

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No independent polling has been done in the district, but Steve Greenberg of the Siena Poll said his group plans to release one in the next week.

A Republican telephone survey of 408 likely voters by the Tarrance Group conducted Aug. 26-28 found Hayworth leading Maloney 51 percent to 42 percent, with 7 percent undecided. The margin of error was plus or minus 4.9 percentage points. The survey found Hayworth’s name recognition at 89 percent and her favorability rating at “better than 50 percent.”

A Democratic poll by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research conducted for House Majority PAC and the Service Employees International Union in late July among 500 likely voters found Hayworth leading 48 percent to 45 percent, within the poll’s 4.8 percentage point margin of error.

Maloney said he’ll win because voters will realize Hayworth has voted with the GOP’s Tea Party wing to give tax breaks to millionaires and eliminate funding for Planned Parenthood.

“People in the Hudson Valley are thoughtful, moderate, pragmatic folks who want solutions in Washington, and they are sick of Tea Party priorities,” he said.

Maloney also said Hayworth’s smaller-government philosophy has left the district with “a leadership vacuum” in local problems such as drinking-water issues in Hopewell Junction and flood protection in Wallkill.

Hayworth has said she works well with Democrats in Washington and is working with Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo on plans for a new Tappan Zee Bridge. She supports GOP plans to overhaul Medicare, saying the plans would not change the program for people 55 and older. And she does not regret her vote to defund Planned Parenthood, though Democrats have made it a campaign issue.

“Certainly there are many, many people who object to having their federal tax dollars used for elective abortion, and you can’t separate those dollars,” she said. “That is deeply offensive to a lot of people who have made their voice heard.”

It’s unclear whether the two candidates will debate. They appeared together Monday at a meeting of the Westchester Women’s Council of Realtors. Maloney said in an interview that he’s ready to debate “any time, any place.” Hayworth said she didn’t know what has been scheduled. Her campaign spokesman, Michael Knowles, said in an email he assumed “the logistical questions involve forums and hosts,” but no debates have been agreed to.

The district has flipped between Republicans and Democrats. Hayworth beat two-term Democrat John Hall in 2010, four years after Hall ousted Republican Sue Kelly.